Blue Roses and Black Cupcakes
by Takara Phoenix
Summary: Mortal AU - Percy buys a bakery. He loves the neighborhood and gets along great with the owners of the other shops. He especially has an eye on the son of the funeral home owner; Nico di Angelo. Then, one day, Percy starts finding blue dyed roses at his doorstep every day. And he just can't figure out who'd leave them for him... Cue in the misunderstanding. Nico/Percy slash Nicercy


PJatO || Nicercy || PJatO || Blue Roses and Black Cupcakes || PJatO || Nicercy || PJatO

Title: Blue Roses and Black Cupcakes – The Baker and the Undertaker

Fandom: Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus; human AU

Disclaimer: All rights reserved to Rick Riordan for he created the awesomeness that is Nico di Angelo. And everything else related to Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus. Aside from the Gods, they belong to the old Greeks. This fanfiction and its OCs on the other hand are entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.

Warnings: shounen-ai, fluff, cuteness, misunderstandings, courting, shoujo-ai, hetero, threesome

Main Pairing: Nico/Percy

Side Pairings: Piper/Annabeth, Frank/Hazel, Frank/Hazel/Leo (implied), Jason/Reyna, Grover/Juniper, Hades/Persephone, Paul/Sally

Percy Jackson Characters: Perseus Jackson, Nico di Angelo, Bianca di Angelo, Hazel Levesque, Frank Zhang, Leo Valdez, Tyson, Rachel Elizabeth Dare, Piper McLean, Annabeth Chase, Jason Grace, Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano, Grover Underwood, Juniper, Will Solace, Lou Ellen, Cecil Rogers, Connor Stoll, Travis Stoll, Sally Blofis, Paul Blofis, Mrs. O'Leary, Aurum, Argentum

Godly Characters: Demeter, Hades, Persephone, Zerberus

Summary: Nico's father owns a funeral home, his stepmother owns the flower shop next to it. One day, a gorgeous baker buys the empty café in their street. For Nico, it's love at first sight, but he doesn't have much experience with romance.

 **Blue Roses and Black Cupcakes**

 _The Baker and the Undertaker_

It had been an impulse-buy. Percy wasn't normally one to act on impulses, but he just couldn't resist.

He had gone to the graveyard, as he often did. His mom's parents had died in a plane crash when his mom had been a young girl and she had been raised by her uncle Rich, who then died of cancer when she had still been a young woman. Percy had never met any of them personally, but they were family and Sally had often taken Percy to the graves when he was little, telling him stories about his grandparents and granduncle, so in a way he felt as though he knew them. Whenever his mother couldn't make it, he would go and take care of the grave, renew the flowers every other week, water them, make sure the graves were clean and all. The graveyard was beautiful and the family owning the flower shop right opposite it was nice and kind. Percy was actually friends with the staff. There was a little café next to the flower shop, where Percy usually got a bagel and a coffee for the way, since the graveyard wasn't exactly close to his apartment. He loved the little café, it had instantly drawn his attention because the house was bright baby-blue and blue was Percy's favorite color.

So when one day as he checked on the graves, he noticed that the café was closed – closed for good, apparently – he couldn't withstand the temptation. He went to his best friend Annabeth, who was an accountant and knew financial stuff way better than Percy. After she laughed in his face because he didn't even have close to enough money to buy a café, much less to renovate and kickstart his own business, he reluctantly went to two more people. One of them being his second best friend Rachel, who was rich, the other being his dad, who also was kind of rich. He didn't beg or ask them to just give him the money. He went with Annabeth at his side and roped them into investing money in him. And while Poseidon was overjoyed to help his son out – he actually insisted on just giving Percy the money, but Percy in return insisted on paying him back for it. Rachel all the while was hooked – and she wanted to do more than just lend him money, she wanted to be his partner. Financially and in the café itself. She had jobbed as a barista during college, because her parents denied her to pay for art classes, but once she became an actual artist, she made more than enough money to never need to rely on her parents again. And as much as Rachel loved being an artist, it had her cooped up in her apartment nearly all day long. She wanted to get out more, meet people, spend time with her favorite people. Working in the café sounded awesome for her. His father all the while gave him more than just money too – he gave Percy his little brother. Tyson was seventeen and Poseidon thought that it was time he learned to be responsible too, so now Percy had a waiter and boy for everything while he also got to spend time with his beloved baby half-brother.

So, with the financial support, the emotional support and the physical help from everyone, Percy went and bought the café only two days after he had seen that it was for sale.

Sure, it was a lot of work to renovate the place and make it his own, but bless his big family, because all five of his older half-siblings came to help as well as his friends, his mom and stepfather and of course Tyson, who was very excited to work with Percy.

"I am so dead", whispered Percy at the end of the first week of renovating.

He collapsed at the bar on one of the plastic covered bar stools. His mom sat next to him, smiling fondly as she lifted the paintbrush to paint his nose blue. He grumbled, making Sally giggle.

"You wanted to open up a bakery, you gotta work for this", declared Sally fondly.

Percy wiggled his nose and glared at his mom playfully. "I've been working! Look at all this work! Triton, Proteus, me and Leo completely tore the counter down and built a new one. We installed a new kitchen, got a new hardwood floor, Benthy, Rhode and Kym helped me organize new chairs and tables and Rhode the sweetheart stitched the white table clothes with cute fishes to fit the theme... While all my helpers come and go, I've not left this place for a week straight now..."

Sally smiled softly at him, brushing his hair out of his face. "I know, honey. I was just teasing. I know how hard you've been working and you won't believe how proud I am."

"Aw, look at the Jacksons, being sappy again."

Percy and Sally turned to look at Annabeth. The blonde was grinning teasingly as she entered the bakery together with her gorgeous and awesome girlfriend Piper. Piper had been here every second day to help out since she wasn't too busy. She was a tomboy and cheeky and she could make Annabeth forget the name of her favorite architect with just one look, which was to equal parts awesome and ridiculous and Percy loved teasing his best friend about it.

"So, you know I got good news for you", chimed Piper, waltzing over to bump hips with Percy.

"You're taking over renovations and I can nap?", asked Percy with hopeful eyes.

"I got you a cook", huffed Piper and rolled her eyes. "And a waitress. You said you got a barista in Rachel and a waiter in your little brother, but you need more than just one waiter, you know?"

"Really?", asked Percy, sitting up straight and groaning at the pain in his back. "Who?"

"Well, the waitress is incredible, she's super awesome and so hot. Isn't she hot, Annie?"

"The hottest", snorted Annabeth fondly and rolled her eyes.

"Oh. You're talking about yourself", chuckled Percy.

"Yup", confirmed Piper, grabbing a paintbrush and bucket of blue paint from the counter. "I'm kind of bored anyway since I don't got too many classes this semester, so I figured a part time job would be a great idea. So Annie isn't my sugar momma anymore."

"Ew", snickered Percy and made a face, just to have Annabeth elbow him. "And the cook?"

"The cook is...", started Piper in an obnoxiously loud voice.

"Your very own, very awesome, very irreplaceable Leo Valdez!", announced a loud Latino.

Leo burst into the room like he was a Hollywood star ready for his photo shooting. Percy stared for a second before squealing and hugging the excited Latino. Percy legitimately adored the jumpy tinkerer who had helped him build stuff like the counter. Sure, his brothers were the muscles behind this, but Leo was a genius when it came to building things.

"Wait. You can cook?", questioned Percy after a moment.

"Well duh", huffed Leo and rolled his eyes. "You know how I took all those cooking classes last year, right? I know like all the food by now! And _you_ said that it tasted awesome!"

"...The cooking classes you took because you saw this 'totally hot couple' signing up for French cooking class last spring, so you decided to also sign up and afterward you turned into their cooking stalker?", questioned Rachel doubtfully as she emerged from the kitchen.

"I'd like to hear _that_ story", requested Sally as she perked up.

"Okay, so", started Piper excited as she and Rachel sat down with Sally conspiratorially.

"Leo was fixing up a restaurant, you know how he occasionally helps out his big half-brothers in their workshop, right?", continued Rachel with a smirk. "And while he was working there, the restaurant was holding cooking classes. One day, he saw this couple signing up..."

"Gorgeous girl and handsome hunk", interrupted Piper, wiggling her eyebrows. "So, you know Leo, he's the definition of impulse decisions and bahm, he signed up for a French cooking class."

"Because they started asking me if I wanted to sign up since I had been standing right behind them for like five minutes", whined Leo weakly, blushing embarrassed. "I had no other _choice_. But... cooking was actual fun. So I kept signing up for more classes. And I'm really good."

"That, I can vouch for", agreed Piper with a heavenly sigh.

"Well then, it's settled!", declared Sally with a playful smile.

"What's settled, love?", asked Paul curiously while carrying the new lampshades in. "Look what came. Or, well, look what was left outside because the delivery guy is lazy."

"Percy just decided to hire Leo as his new cook and Piper is the new waitress", replied Sally.

"...This bakery sounds more like a clubhouse at this point", stated Paul amused.

Percy grinned proudly and nodded. "This bakery is going to be awesome. I'll have all of grandma's cakes on the menu and Leo can cook up like _small_ lunch dishes, we can also sell sandwiches and of course salads. Breakfast menus – bacon and eggs, waffles, bagels, pancakes! Everything!"

Sally's eyes actually got a little wet at that. She and Percy started baking her mother's recipes when Percy had been little, when they had been living with Sally's abusive first husband. They'd make the cakes, curl together in front of the TV while Gabe was out gambling and for the duration of that cake, they could pretend the world was perfect. And eating the cakes, when Sally would close her eyes, she could still see the faint outlines of her mother's smile and the ringing of her father's laughter, when she used to bake with her parents as a little girl.

"You raised a good boy", whispered Paul as he came to stand behind his wife.

"Don't put _all_ the credit on me", argued Sally with a faint smile. "You may have only entered his life when he was fourteen, but you were the male role-model he needed. He was... out of control as a teenager and even though I gave him all the love I could... it was just all so hard..."

"Sally, honey", interrupted Paul softly as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "I know. I know your life hasn't been easy and I am grateful that I could help you. Both of you."

Percy smiled to himself as he overheard his mother and stepfather, before clapping loudly to gain the attention of everyone. "Okay, guys. We still gotta finish that wall by tonight, because at _one point_ , I want to get started with the upstairs apartment so I don't have to sleep on a mattress anymore, because that, that would be really great."

"Wait, there's an apartment as part of this deal?", asked Leo eagerly. "Dibs on roommating!"

"I'm not gonna roommate you, Valdez", huffed Percy with a grin, elbowing Leo.

/break\

Percy was roommating Leo after all. He was also adopting Leo speech. But with Leo living with him, he also got Leo paying rent, which was a blessing. And now that renovations were done and the _LSP Bakery_ was ready to be opened the coming Monday, Percy was actually happy to have Leo, because now that he had no work to distract him for like twenty-two hours a day and with two hours of sleep consisting of naps throughout the day, he realized how lonely life in the apartment would have been. He had been living in a rooming arrangement with like five others ever since college. Back then, he had answered some ad for roommates and it had been cramped, but cheap.

"So... Tomorrow is the big day", pointed Leo out as the two of them were laying on their living room floor (in lack of a couch). "You excited, Perce? Because I'm kinda freaked out and it's not even my bakery! I'm just gonna cook, which is really weird too because I kinda always thought I'd like... work in a car shop or something or whatever?"

"You already tinker during your free time like all the time. There's nothing wrong with having more than one passion. Just because you find one thing you like doesn't mean it's the only thing defining you", countered Percy with a soft smile. "I mean, for my like entire high school everyone defined me as a swimmer. I was the best on the team, best in the state. They said I should become a professional swimmer, win the Olympics or whatever."

Leo paused and frowned. "Yeah, what happened with that? I mean, I saw the trophies at your mom's house before, but it's like... neither you nor Rachel ever _talk_ about your high school career."

There was a stretch of silence as Percy stared at the ceiling. "I got into an accident. It took months of rehab, but... my shoulder is still acting up often. I can swim, but... not like I used to."

"I'm sorry, man", whispered Leo and rolled over to hug Percy. "I didn't..."

"I know", laughed Percy roughly. "My family, Rach and Annie are kind of the only ones knowing. I don't... like talking about that. As a kid, swimming was my life. It threw me off course when I realized I wouldn't be able to do what everyone had always assumed I'd end up doing. It's kind of why I have been... randomly drifting around at college, I guess. Attending whatever classes, trying everything. But _this_ , this is... mine. This could be my thing. My... Mine."

Leo hummed and continued hugging Percy even tighter.

/break\

"Welcome to the _LSP Bakery_! What can we do for you?"

Percy would be lying if he'd say he hadn't rehearsed that sentence at least a hundred times in his head to get it right. Rachel was behind the counter with him and Tyson and Piper stood straight and eagerly waiting next to the counter, even Leo was peeking out from the kitchen curiously. Everyone was on edge with excitement about their very first customer.

"This feels kind of threatening", pointed the stunned brunette out. "I feel like prey."

"Grover!", exclaimed Percy with a grin. "What are you doing here, dude?"

"Well, you mentioned that you bought the bakery last week and I saw you and your... army of helpers throughout the week working", shrugged Grover with a grin, walking over to hug Percy.

"We wanted to officially welcome you to the neighborhood", added his wife Juniper.

Percy grinned and moved in to also pull her into the hug. Grover was a brunette with a goatee who kind of gave off a stoner vibe even though he wasn't one. He and his wife Juniper, a beautiful caramel-haired pale woman with flowers braided into her hair all the time, were both vegan environmentalists who worked at the flower shop next door.

"I'm so sorry I haven't been over to like say hi, but I've been busy", said Percy sheepishly.

"That is absolutely no problem, Percy", chided the third with a smile.

Hazel Zhang, the daughter of the flower shop owner. She was a chocolate-skinned beauty with nearly golden eyes and a force of curls on her head. Seriously, she and Rachel could have a curl-off and he wasn't sure which one had more cloud on her head. Hazel was kind and sweet and Percy had nearly instantly hit it off with her, though then again, people always accused him of being 'too adorable not to get along with'. Hazel offered him a kind smile as she carried in a palette of potted plants. Now that he looked at her, he noticed that Juniper and Grover had also each brought a palette. The plants were forget-me-nots in blue little pots and they were gorgeous.

"What's this?", asked Percy stunned as Hazel went to hug him.

"Those are a gift from mom and grandma and all of us to say welcome", replied Hazel with a grin. "We look forward to spending lunch break at this place from now on and to get to gossip with you."

"You gonna introduce us, or what?", asked Rachel after a moment.

"Right. So sorry", grinned Percy sheepishly before calling out a little louder. "Leo, come out! I gotta introduce all you guys! So, those are Grover and Juniper Underwood and this is Hazel Zhang, they work in the flower shop next door. This is my crew! Rachel Dare, Piper McLean, my beloved little baby brother Tyson and this is Leo Valdez, our cook."

Things got kind of weird when Leo and Hazel just stared at each other dumbly. Hazel was the first one to react, smiling pleased and approaching Leo to pull him into a tight hug.

"It's _so_ nice to see you, Leo!", exclaimed the florist happily.

Thing got _very_ weird when Leo just blushed and stuttered some excuse about something burning in the kitchen before practically fleeing the room. Percy frowned confused and stared after him.

"Well, that was weird...", muttered Percy.

"Shush, we call him 'Leo'", chided Piper with a teasing grin and a shrug. "Don't worry about it. It's Leo. He's _always_ weird. Has always been. It's part of his charm, I guess."

"O—Okay", hummed Grover with knitted eyebrows. "Well, uh, we gotta get back to the shop..."

"Yeah, sure. Thanks for dropping by and thanks for the flowers", grinned Percy, before pausing. "Oh, do you guys wanna take coffee with you? As a thank you."

"Considering that it's seven in the morning, _yes_ ", grinned Hazel playfully.

"Five coffees to go, on the house as thanks for the flowers then", smiled Percy softly.

Rachel heaved a sigh and rolled her eyes. "You know you got a business here, right? If you hand out stuff free right from the get-go, this is gonna end in a disaster."

"Shut up. It's called being polite", huffed Percy and stuck his tongue out.

Everybody laughed at that while Rachel prepared the coffees. The trio left and said their thanks. As soon as they were out of the door, Percy headed straight for the kitchen – closely followed by Rachel, Piper and Tyson, of course. Since they were all too curious to be good for them.

"Okay, seriously Leo, what was _that_?", hissed Percy with a frown.

"T—That's _her_ ", yelped Leo back, waving his hands around wildly. "Hazel! The wonderful wife with the hunky husband! The woman I have been crushing on!"

"...Oh", muttered Percy dumbfounded.

"Did not expect that", whispered Piper wide-eyed. "She's fucking gorgeous."

"No kidding. She's a bombshell", grunted Rachel in agreement.

"...Why is _that_ the part you're stuck on?", asked Leo flustered and frustrated.

"Will someone explain to me what's going on?", requested Tyson, looking completely lost.

"Okay, so, Leo met this cute couple during his cooking classes and he's kinda crushing on them both", explained Rachel in a fast pace. "And apparently, _that_ was half the couple."

"Oh", nodded Tyson wide-eyed. "I'm already in over my head having a girlfriend! How would one even _deal_ with like three people in a relationship?"

"He recently got together with his very first girlfriend", whispered Percy with a teasing grin. "And he like texts me every day what he's supposed to do and how dates work. It's adorable."

Tyson's ears went red as the others giggled at him. Thankfully, he was saved by the bell. Literally.

"Uhm... Hello? I thought the bakery opened today? Is anyone here?", called someone.

"I'm sorry, sir. We just had a, ah, situation in the kitchen", apologized Percy as he hurried back. "Welcome to the _LSP Bakery_! How may we brighten your day today?"

/break\

Okay, so the first day mainly seemed to consider of the locals coming by to welcome them. Which was awesome, really, because the neighbors were great. There was this fashion boutique owned by the very fashionable and sweet Silena Beauregard, a bar owned by the twins Pollux and Castor, a magic shop owned by the Stoll brothers (who seemed up to a lot of fun and mischief and Percy was kind of afraid of the combination of both of them with Leo, to be honest).

"So, you're a vet? Are you good with dogs?", asked Percy eagerly.

One of his neighbors was an animal clinic and the doctor and owner (second generation owner, as he had learned) had also decided to stop by and say hello, which was great because Percy owned a dog. Or a 'mighty beast', as his friends liked to call his lady. Will Solace grinned amused at him.

"My best friend owns a demon dog and said demon dog adores me, so yes, I guess I am", chuckled Will amused. "If you ever need a vet, I'm your man. And, well, if there are other things..."

The blonde drawled the last word slowly out as he let his eyes wander down Percy's body in slow motion. Percy's eyes widened and his cheeks flushed brightly. He hadn't been actively flirted with in what felt like years. Then again, his aimless college years had been kind of not exactly his time to focus on things like romance. Before Percy could make an idiot of himself, the blonde took his coffee, winked at Percy and left to get back to his clinic.

"Woah. Do you always look like you're having an aneurism when someone flirts with you? Because it's like... the funniest thing I have ever seen", whispered Leo in awe.

"Oh shut up, at least my face doesn't explode when someone I like walks in", huffed Percy.

Leo stuck his tongue out at Percy before he stomped back into the kitchen like a pouting child. Rachel snickered amused while she prepared the coffees for the three people sitting in a corner and eating cake. Grinning pleased, Percy returned his attention to what he had been doing before. He was in the middle of placing the freshly backed cupcakes in the show stand at the counter.

"Ciao, you must be the new neighbor. Considering you're standing behind the counter."

Percy blinked doe-eyed as he heard this pleasant but foreign accented voice. He had a thing for accents, his last boyfriend had been from London with a very posh British accent. Shaking himself out of his stupor, Percy put on a smile and looked up. And oh, that face matched the velvety dark voice. Olive-skin, high cheekbones, ridiculously dark eyes and cute curls.

"Hello", started Percy before pausing. "Welcome to the _LSP Bakery_. What can I do for you?"

The handsome guy had a smirk that would make pants drop. "I came to welcome you to the familia too, since as far as I can tell, everyone else in the neighborhood did, si? I'm Nico di Angelo."

And yes, Percy absolutely believed that this man was of the angels. "Thanks. Uhm... I'm Percy Jackson. I'm the owner of this beautiful little place."

"It really is", agreed Nico as he made a slow turn and looked around with an intrigued expression on his face. "I like what you did with the place. It's very... blue."

Piper laughed. "Yeah, that sums it up pretty nicely. That's very Percy, you know."

"Don't mind Piper", mumbled Percy embarrassed. "So, this is us. Feel free to drop by for any meal you want and lots of sweet treats. The sweet treats are made by me, by the way."

"Then I'd like to take a cupcake", decided Nico with a pleasant smile.

Percy grinned and put one on a plate before pushing it over to the Italian man. "So... Which shop is yours? Everyone else instantly introduced themselves with their shops and told us to drop by too. I guess it was as much self-advertisement as welcoming us."

"We own the funeral home. I find it a bit morbid to introduce myself saying 'Please, feel free to drop by when you drop dead'", smirked Nico amused.

Percy blinked doe-eyed before he burst into laughter. "Yeah, I can see that being awkward. But if I had a funeral home, that would _totally_ be my slogan!"

"That is such a Percy thing to say", snorted Annabeth sitting at the counter, eating muffins.

"You seem to be very amusing, Percy", stated Nico, looking from Piper to Annabeth.

Both females exchanged a grin before nodding. "Yeah, Percy is something very entertaining."

"Hey! Stop talking about me like I'm not even here", protested Percy with a pout before handing Nico the cupcake. "Here you go. Say, I frequent the flower shop and Miss Persephone said that she's married to the owner of the funeral home... uhm..."

"My father", clarified Nico right away. "Persephone is my stepmother, si."

"Ah, okay", nodded Percy relieved. "For a moment there I thought, I mean you are a little young for her, so... I should probably just stop talking, right?"

"That's a good idea", agreed Annabeth with a pointed look.

"Well, thank you for the cupcakes and welcome to the neighborhood, I have a lot to do. Have a nice day", stated Nico before leaving, winking at Percy with a playful smile.

Percy returned the smile, blushing a little. Opening this shop had already brought him quite the eye candy. And the eye candy even flirted with him! This neighborhood seemed like a great place!

/break\

It was indeed a very great place. Everyone took to either getting their coffee, breakfast or lunch at Percy's place and within a week's time, Percy had made a lot of regulars and also a lot of friends.

"I really like this place", declared Lou, a medical assistant of Will's.

Will, Lou and Cecil, the third in the animal clinic, were sitting together and eating breakfast. Lou praised the bakery every time she got her scrambled eggs with bacon. Rachel laughed amused as she brought them their fresh orange juice over. Cecil grunted in agreement around his bacon sandwich. After refilling Will's coffee, Rachel sauntered back to the counter.

"I like mornings the most", declared Percy from where he was sitting on top of the counter.

"I think you are the first one to ever say that", countered Nico amused.

He sat at a bar stool at the counter, eating a cupcake. Percy grinned and handed him another cupcake while Rachel came to refill both their coffees. Nico grunted in gratitude.

"It feels so... homey when everyone's here like that. Still lazy and taking it slow, all so casual and not spent after a long day", shrugged Percy and surveyed the room.

Connor and Travis Stoll sat at the window, sharing a strawberry cake. And entire cake. For breakfast. They were a bit crazy, but Percy actually liked that. Grover and Juniper also sat close by, sharing a milkshake while eating buttered toast and eggs and looking dreamily into each other's eyes. They were sickeningly cute – and Percy wanted that too. He wanted to share a milkshake with someone while staring into his eyes like the answers to all the questions in the universe laid behind those eyes. Percy heaved a soft sigh as he took a cupcake for himself.

"You sound like a hopeless romantic, Percy", observed Nico fondly.

For a second, Percy feared he had said that out loud, but then he realized what he had previously said was kind of romantic too, in a sense. Grinning, Percy shrugged a little. He was, after all. Percy's eyes were focused on Nico now. The handsome Italian was one of Percy's regulars and Percy very much enjoyed the conversations. He was witty, with a dry, dark sense of humor. And he was _very_ nice to look at. Like, very nice, especially in his well-fitted Italian suits.

"Brother!"

Percy's first instinct was to react, because this was his place and usually he was the one being addressed as brother here. This was, however, a very feminine voice. Too feminine to be Tyson. In came Hazel, with a bright smile, walking straight up to Nico and kissing his cheek.

"...Brother?", asked Percy a little surprised.

"Remember when I said the owner of the flower shop is my stepmother?", offered Nico.

"And Hazel is her daughter. Right", nodded Percy in realization.

"Exactly", confirmed Hazel with a bright smile.

"Here for breakfast, or just for your brother?", asked Percy with a smile.

"Breakfast", declared a tired looking tall Asian. "And coffee. Lots of coffee."

"That's my husband, Frank", introduced Hazel with a smile.

"Oh, so _that_ is Frank", stated Rachel ominously.

"...Uh, yes, this is Frank", confirmed Frank confused.

"We've already heard a lot about you from Leo", explained Percy with a pleasant smile.

"Leo?", asked Frank interested and visibly perked up some. "You know him?"

"Leo, come here for a sec", called Rachel out loudly, smirking wickedly.

Seconds later and a flour-powdered Latino peeked out from the kitchen. "What's up?"

"Leo!", exclaimed Frank with a smile. "I haven't seen you in so long! How are you?"

"Uhm, yeah, I was busy helping my friend Percy here with his shop", replied Leo and blushed.

"Oh, so... you live in the neighborhood now?", asked Frank intrigued.

"You could say that, yeah", nodded Leo with a nearly shy grin.

"That's wonderful", smiled Hazel pleased. "It's... nice seeing you more often, Leo."

"Yeah, that", agreed Frank wit a dopey grin.

"I, uh, need to get back to the... kitchen", stated Leo awkwardly after another moment.

Percy snorted amused before absentmindedly refilling Nico's coffee. Poor fool in love.

/break\

Over the following month, Percy grew very comfortable in his new home and neighborhood. He was sitting at a table with Piper, Annabeth and Rachel, eating their own lunch. While chewing his sandwich, Percy was twirling a blue-dyed rose in his other hand. Every single day for the past month, Percy had opened the shop just to find a single, beautifully blue rose on his doorsteps.

"Can you look any more lost in love?", snorted Rachel amused. "You don't even know who it's from. Or... have you made any progress in your investigations, Detective Jackson?"

"I've narrowed it down to four suspects?", offered Percy with a frown. "It could be from either Stoll brother, you know both of them are very flirtatious and they could mean it in a... teasingly friendly way? Or it could be Will. He's been flirting heavily with me. Or maybe Nico, I don't know..."

"You should go to the flower shop again, ask again. Use your kitten-eyes. They're super effective."

"Thanks, Piper", snorted Percy and rolled his eyes. "Well... can't hurt... I guess..."

Sniffing the flower, Percy put it into the vase on the table and got up. It was driving him insane, really. He obviously had a secret admirer and he was dying to know who it was. Was someone genuinely interested in him? The idea seemed oddly surreal to him, really. He had gone to the flower shop before, but all he had gotten was a polite 'that's what the _secret_ in secret admirer stands for'. Very useless, honestly. Putting on a smile, Percy entered the flower shop. The owners – Demeter and Persephone Levesque – were behind the counter, arguing about two flowers. Grover, Juniper and Hazel were putting away flowers and arranging bouquets.

"Percy!", stated Hazel with a friendly smile. "Hello. How are you? And the others?"

"Leo is great", replied Percy with a mischievously knowing grin.

"I asked about everyone. Not just Leo", argued Hazel with a blush. "But... good that he's great."

"What can we do for you?", asked Persephone to save her daughter from further embarrassment.

"I got another very beautiful rose today", drawled Percy out. "I just... _Please_ tell me?"

"...Wow. That thing the kid does with his eyes. Wow", grunted Demeter impressed. "But no."

Whining, Percy hung his head a little. Same helpful reply he got every time so far. He was not a fan of guessing games. He wanted to know who liked him so he could figure out if he liked him back.

"You said you had an appointment at the animal clinic for Mrs. O'Leary today, right?", asked Hazel with a playful smile. "Maybe... you will meet him there. Who knows?"

Perking up a little, Percy bid his goodbyes and went back to his shop. So it was Will after all? Well, the blonde was very charming and all. Still, there was a weirdly disappointed feeling in the pit of his stomach, because a tiny piece of him had hoped it had been from Nico after all. Out of everyone Percy had met in the past month, he enjoyed the conversations with Nico the best. The quirky smirks and banter, his dark and dry humor and insanely good looks. But it wasn't like Percy was in love or anything. He just had a crush, that was all. Yes. No need to get his hopes up.

"Guys, I'll be out for a bit. I forgot Mrs. O'Leary's doctor's appointment", announced Percy.

/break\

"Go. I said _go_ , for the underworld's sake, you are driving me insane, boy!"

Nico looked up to see his father glaring at him. His big sister Bianca next to him snorted and nodded in agreement. He frowned confused and looked around. Frank was in the middle of carrying a pot of beautiful flowers over – he had volunteered to pick them up; everyone knew he just wanted to go and see Hazel during work hours – and even he snorted in agreement.

"Why? What did I do?", asked Nico confused.

Bianca cleared her throat and did her best male voice impression. "Percy's eyes sparkle like emeralds in the sunlight and they are simply stunning."

Frank grinned and chimed in. "And have you ever heard a purer sound than his laughter?"

"Are we playing Nico impressions again? I have one too!", exclaimed Jason as he stumbled into the room with his fiance Reyna. "I have never eaten something as delicious as Percy's sweets. I could eat his cakes all day long. And the way he blushes when he's complimented for them."

"Ever since this young man moved into our neighborhood, it has been Percy this and Percy that with you", drawled Hades di Angelo out with an annoyed glare. "It's getting exhausting, son."

Nico blushed so hard, he felt as though his ears should explode. "He's just very... special."

"The way he laughs, the way he jokes, the way he talks, the way he looks – we get it", sighed Reyna, one eyebrow cocked. "Now, can we please get going? Aurum and Argentum need their shots and so does Zerberus, if I remember that right. It's enough that you stalk your little crush so much that you asked your vet when _he_ made an appointment for his dog so you could run into him..."

"What we're all trying to say, mio fratellino", sighed Bianca heavily, grasping his shoulders and looking him deep in the eyes. "Is that you are very pathetic and your pining is embarrassing."

"Thanks for the love, mia sorellona", grunted Nico with a glare before whistling. "Come, boy."

Their gigantic black beast of a dog ran down the stairs and nearly threw Nico off balance. Grinning at him and ruffling his soft fur, Nico grabbed the leash to click it onto the collar. At least one member of his family who wasn't betraying him. And okay yes, maybe he had stalked Percy a tiny bit and asked Will when Percy had made his appointment with Mrs. O'Leary this week – Percy had mentioned it in passing and since Nico's dog and Reyna's dogs all three needed their shots, he had thought it'd be a great idea to make a matching appointment so he could see Percy. Okay, even he could see it. He was pathetic. It was just that he had never met anyone comparable to Percy.

"Okay, let's go, lover boy", chuckled Reyna.

Her and Jason were Nico's oldest friends. He had met them in high school and they had never really been separable after that. They owned a karate school down the street together, had gotten engaged soon after graduation and were currently saving up for the perfect wedding. They were a love story written by Disney, really. Nico grinned as Reyna's two hounds, Argentum and Aurum, sniffed him curiously. Dogs loved him. Humans, sadly, didn't really. Will, Reyna and Jason had practically forced their way into Nico's life, but other than them, he really only had his family. He was horrible at social interactions; his dark aura and humor normally drove people away. The fact that he worked at a funeral home was not really helping. So Nico had somewhat accepted that. He didn't need more people than his family and the very few friends he had. He was happy with that. There had never really been anyone who had piqued his interest. And then Percy Jackson had walked into his life, taken up the resident bakery and charming the entire neighborhood with his sweets and his smile and his winning personality. He was literally the opposite of Nico. All bright and smiling, kind and social, liked by everyone. He was like a ray of sunshine after a cold, hard winter and Nico was soaking it up. No one had ever made him feel like that. And therein laid the problem. Nico had never felt this way before, so how was he supposed to act? He went and asked his stepmother, very embarrassed to do so. She advised him that flowers were the way to go. Okay. So Nico started dropping anonymous flowers at the shop, one every day for his Percy. Not his Percy though.

"Have you considered just telling him?", suggested Reyna as the two walked their way.

"I tried. On multiple occasions, but it's like... language is deleted from my brain the moment I open my mouth to actually speak up", admitted Nico and heaved a sigh.

"You poor fool", laughed Reyna and nudged her best friend. "So we're hoping he catches on, returns the feelings and is the first one to speak up then?"

"That's the plan", nodded Nico. "Think it'll work?"

Reyna just snorted and bumped shoulders with Nico. The five of them headed straight to the Sunshine Animal Clinic, where Lou was sitting behind the reception, popping her gum.

"Hello, do you have an—ah, you guys. Hey", greeted Lou and waved at them. "Twenty more minutes. There's one more before you, sorry about the delay."

Nico and Reyna nodded at her before they sat down with the other waiting patiently. One of those being Percy Jackson. A pleased smile spread over Nico's lips as he sat down next to Percy.

"Buongiorno", greeted Nico, feigning surprise. "Funny running into you here."

Percy looked up from where he was consulting his gorgeous dog. "Oh. Nico. Hello."

"And who is this pretty puppy?", inquired Nico as he reached out to pat the dog.

"That would be Mrs. O'Leary", introduced Percy in awe as Nico just cuddled her. "Who's this?"

"That's Zerberus", said Nico with a grin. "Don't worry, he's very tame."

Zerberus and Mrs. O'Leary started sniffing each other before they switched humans. Zerberus half crawled onto Percy's lap, sniffing his stomach, while Mrs. O'Leary enjoyed the patting she was getting from Nico. Reyna snorted as she watched the four of them. Even though Nico was patting the giant dog, his eyes were on Percy with a very puppy-like expression in them.

"Aurum and Argentum aren't sick, are they?", asked Percy concerned as he looked at Reyna.

"No, they're just trained to behave and not jump people", chuckled Reyna fondly.

"...You know them?", asked Nico with just the tiniest hint of jealousy.

"Yeah. Reyna and I occasionally run into each other at the dog park", replied Percy amused.

Nico turned to glare at Reyna with an expression of utter betrayal, just as Percy got called in. Reyna snorted and tried to ignore her friend, instead paying attention to her two hounds.

"You regularly meet... and you haven't told me and invited me along?", hissed Nico.

"I enjoy the calm of walking Aurum and Argentum. I do not need to watch you making googly eyes at Percy at all times", stated Reyna casually. "Your yearning has reached annoying levels."

For the rest of their waiting phase, Nico was decidedly pouting and ignoring Reyna, much to her amusement. She had never seen him that way. He was always brooding and all, never really showing any interest in anyone aside from his sisters. He hadn't even been interested in befriending Reyna and Jason at first, but thankfully enough Jason was one stubborn bastard. They wormed their ways into Nico's heart until he finally accepted them as part of his life. That Nico so openly showed interest in someone was baffling. It made Reyna wish for Percy to return Nico's feelings.

"He's gorgeous", whispered Nico as he watched Percy.

Percy, Mrs. O'Leary and Will just left the treatment room. Nico frowned suspiciously at the blush on Percy's cheeks and the laughter in Will's eyes. This didn't look good. This didn't look good at all. Percy waved goodbye to Reyna and Nico before he left the animal clinic and Will motioned for Nico and Reyna to follow him in. Nico glared at the back of Will's head suspiciously.

"What were you and Percy just talking about?", asked the Italian, trying to sound casual.

"Percy asked me out on a date", chuckled Will amused. "Too bad I had to let him down. One week earlier and I'd be all over that. I mean, have you seen that perfect ass?"

"I have", confirmed Nico grimly.

"How come you passed it up?", asked Reyna curiously.

"My car died on me last week and the mechanic who came to pick it up was...", started Will before blushing a little. "Well, Jake was very flirtatious and asked me out on a date afterward."

"Good for you, Will", smiled Reyna.

"Yeah... good for you", grunted Nico with a half nod.

/break\

"I made a complete fool of myself", groaned Percy as he hid his face in Leo's lap.

The two of them were curled together on the couch, watching movies. The Latino grinned amused as he ran his fingers through Percy's hair in a soothing way. Percy just groaned a little more pitiful.

"Why? You... seized the moment and all", shrugged Leo casually.

"No, I assumed that Will was the one to send me the flowers, so I asked him out, just to realize that he's _not_ the one and then he looked at me all apologetic and blergh", whined Percy, before taking a deep breath and sitting up with a determined expression on his face. "Okay. That's it. I'm... I am done waiting for this mysterious secret admirer. I'm not going to drive myself crazy anymore."

"Yeah?", asked Leo hopeful. "How so?"

"Well, if the guy can't even gather enough courage to give me the damn flowers in person, why should I be the one worrying myself?", huffed Percy annoyed. "No. No, who am I to drive myself crazy over a guy I don't even know? I am just going to... to go after what _I_ want."

"And what do you want?", inquired Leo curiously.

"I want Nico di Angelo", stated Percy firmly, cheeks red. "So I am going after Nico di Angelo."

"...Nico?", asked Leo a little surprised.

"He's so dorky and sexy", sighed Percy with a dreamy expression. "The other day, we talked like for an hour about whose side we're on in Civil War, you know? I've never had a philosophical conversation about the MCU. It was awesome. He gets so enthusiastic about the stuff he likes, it's like he becomes a totally different person, you know? All glowing and rambling, compared to his normally more... secluded dark self. Though I like both. He has this bad boy charm. And when he speaks Italian? I just... melt. It's insanely hot, really..."

"I hadn't realized you're into him that much", teased Leo amused. "Well then, go get him."

"I have plans", nodded Percy determined, taking a shaky breath.

/break\

Nico was sulking. And this time, he wasn't even denying it. Hades, Bianca and Frank were wisely walking around him and not talking to him, because he would be ripping off heads today if talked to wrongly. Percy had asked out Will Solace for a date. Nico glowered a little more dangerously.

"Uhm... Hello? Anyone... alive in here?"

The sudden voice of Percy Jackson interrupted Nico's sulking and he perked up with a confused look on his face. Percy grinned brightly as he walked over to Nico, with two coffees and a bag.

"Percy. What... brings you here? Did someone die?", asked Nico concerned.

"No. No one died, but... you didn't show up this morning to get your coffee, so I figured you must be busy and decided to drop by", declared Percy with a nearly shy smile. "Here you go."

Nico blinked slowly – mildly aware of everyone else watching them – before he took the coffee and the bag. When he opened it, he had to smile, even though smiling wasn't his standard facial expression. It was a cupcake. With black frosting and a cute little hard-sugar skull on it.

"You... like my cupcakes. I wanted to bake you one especially for you", explained Percy flustered.

"...That... That is very thoughtful of you", whispered Nico surprised. "Thank you."

Percy took a deep, slow breath and fixed Nico with a determined look that startled the Italian a little. "Do you like me? Like-like, I mean. Because I'd like to go on a date with you. If... If you're interested. But... I mean, you don't have to. And if you're not interested, just forget I said anything."

"Date? You and me?", asked Nico stunned, eyes wide. "How come? I mean, yes. Yes. But..."

Percy smiled brightly – the most blinding smile Nico had ever seen in his entire life – as he nodded. "I... Well, the thing is, I've been getting those anonymous roses for the past weeks and I was wrecking my brain to find out who may like me. Yesterday, Hazel told me I may meet my secret admirer at the vet. And then I figured, since Will was flirting with me, I thought it was Will and I embarrassed myself by asking him out. Even though I'm not even really romantically interested in him. So, last night, I decided that I am so done with that secret admirer and instead of chasing after who may or may not possibly like me, I decided to instead chase after who _I_ like. And I like you."

Percy jumped slightly as all of a sudden, everyone around them started snorting and laughing like Percy had just made the most hilarious joke ever. Frowning confused, the baker turned back to Nico. Was it that funny to think that Percy had a shot with Nico, or what...?

"Come on. Say it, Niccoló", prompted Hades agitated. "We have heard it often enough, after all."

There was a cute blush on Nico's cheeks and Percy wondered what he'd have to do to put it there more often. "I... would like to go on a date with you. Multiple dates, even. Because, uh, I'm kind of... your... secret admirer. I asked Hazel to dye the roses for you and I left them there in the mornings. Because... I'm not... good at _this_."

"Oh", whispered Percy dumbfounded. "You're... Oh."

"For the love of everything holy, would you two please just kiss?", groaned Bianca annoyed.

Nico looked down at the cute little cupcake in his hands. Percy had made one especially for him. Percy liked him. Nico had managed to make Percy like him. Somehow. Looking up again, Nico took in how his cute baker shifted around, looking at Nico's face curiously.

"So... if you like me and I like you... can we listen to your sister?", asked Percy hopefully.

Nico nodded sharply, laying one hand into Percy's neck to pull him close until he finally got to taste those pink, bow-shaped lips. They tasted like frosting, suggesting that Percy had tried his cupcakes before bringing Nico one. Percy sighed into the kiss and leaned forward against Nico.

"So... You and me, a date? Tonight?", asked Nico softly against Percy's lips.

"Yeah. Yeah, that... sounds great", nodded Percy, grinning.

/break\

Nico was a bit awkward during their date, but after the salad, he eased up and realized that all he had to do was do what he had always done. Just talk to Percy. And Percy really enjoyed that. He was a little disappointed that he didn't find a blue rose in front of his shop the next morning though. But then Nico suddenly stood at the counter, the first customer of the day, smiling and with a blue rose in his hands. Percy gave him a shy smile in return before he took the offered rose.

"I really enjoyed last night", started Nico slowly. "Did... you too...?"

The smile turned into a bright grin as Percy leaned over the counter to kiss Nico. "Very much so."

 _~*~ The End ~*~_


End file.
